CIHM 
Microfiche 
Series 
(IMonographs) 


ICIMH 

Collection  de 
microfiches 
(monographles) 


Canadian  Instituta  for  Historical  IMicroraproductions  /  institut  Canadian  da  microraproductions  historiquas 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes  /  Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best  original 
copy  available  for  filniing.  Features  of  this  copy  which 
nnay  be  bibliographically  unique,  which  nnay  alter  any  of 
the  images  in  the  reproduction,  or  which  may 
significantly  change  the  usual  method  of  filming  are 
checked  below. 

["71  Coloured  covers  / 
l^  Couverture  de  couleur 


□ 


D 
D 
D 
D 
D 


D 


D 


Covers  damaged  / 
Couverture  endommag^e 

Covers  restored  and/or  laminated  / 
Couverture  restaur^  et/ou  pellicul^e 

Cover  title  missing  /  Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 

Coloured  maps  /  Cartes  g^ographiques  en  couleur 

Coloured  inic  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)  / 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 

Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations  / 
Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material  / 
Relid  avec  d'autres  documents 

Only  edition  available  / 
Seule  Edition  disponible 

Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion  along 
interior  margin  /  La  retiure  serr^e  peut  causer  de 
I'ombre  ou  de  la  distorsion  le  long  de  la  marge 
int^rieure. 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restorations  may  appear 
within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these  have  tjeen 
omitted  from  filming  /  II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages 
blanches  ajout^es  lors  d'ure  restauration 
apparaissent  dans  le  texte,  mais,  lorsque  cela  ^tait 
possible,  ces  pages  n'ont  pas  616  f  ilm^es. 

Additional  comments  / 
Commentaires  suppl^mentaires: 


L'Institut  a  microfilmi  le  nwilleur  exemplaire  qu'il  lui  a 
M  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details  de  cet  exem* 
plaire  qui  sont  peut-dtre  unkjues  du  point  de  vue  bibli* 
ographiique,  qui  peuvent  nrxxiifier  una  image  reproduite, 
ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une  modification  dans  la  metho- 
ds nomnale  de  filmage  sont  i.idkiu6s  ci-dessous. 

I     I  Coloured  pages  /  Pages  de  couleur 

I I  Pages  damaged  /  Pages  endommagdes 


D 


Pages  restored  and/or  laminated  / 
Pages  restaur^es  et/ou  petliculdes 


0  Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed  / 
Pages  ddcolordes,  tachet^es  ou  piqu^es 

I     I  Pages  detached  /  Pages  d^tach^es 

\y\  Showthrough / Transparence 

I     I  Quality  of  print  varies  / 


D 
D 


D 


Quality  in^gale  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplementary  material  / 
Comprend  du  materiel  suppl^mentaire 

Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata  slips, 
tissues,  etc..  have  been  refilmed  to  ensure  the  best 
possible  image  /  Les  pages  totalement  ou 
partiellement  obscurcies  par  un  feuiilet  d'errata.  une 
pelure.  etc.,  ont  6\6  film^es  k  nouveau  de  fa^on  k 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 

Opposing  pages  with  varying  colouration  or 
discolourations  are  filmed  twice  to  ensure  the  best 
possible  image  /  Les  pages  s'opposant  ayant  des 
colorations  variables  ou  des  decolorations  sont 
fitm^es  deux  fois  afin  d'obtenir  la  meilleure  image 
possible. 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below  / 

Ce  document  est  filmi  au  taux  de  reduction  indiqui  ci-dessous. 


10x 

14x 

18x 

22x 

26x 

30x 

J 

12x 


16x 


20x 


24x 


28x 


32x 


Th«  copy  filmed  h«ra  Km  basn  raproduead  thanks 
to  tha  ganaroaity  of: 

National  Library  of  Ceuiada 


L'axamplaira  film*  fut  raproduit  s'ica  i  la 
O*n«roait«  da: 

Bibliothiqua  nationala  du  Canada 


Tha  imagaa  appaaring  hara  ara  tha  boat  quality 
posaibia  eonaidaring  tha  condition  and  lagibillty 
of  tha  original  copy  and  in  kaaping  with  tha 
filming  eontraet  apaeificationa. 


Original  copiaa  in  printad  papar  covara  ara  filmad 
beginning  with  tha  front  covar  and  anding  on 
tha  laat  paga  with  a  printad  or  illuatratad  impraa- 
sion.  or  tha  back  covar  whan  appropriata.  All 
othar  original  copiaa  mn  filmad  beginning  on  tha 
first  paga  with  a  printad  or  Illuatratad  impraa- 
aion.  and  anding  on  tha  laat  paga  with  a  printad 
or  illuatratad  impraaaion. 


Tha  laat  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  -^  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"!, or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"). 
whichever  appiiaa. 

Mapa.  platae.  charu,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  retios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hend  corner,  left  to 
right  end  top  to  bonom,  as  many  frames  aa 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  imagaa  suhrantea  ont  AtA  reproduites  svec  te 
plus  grand  soin.  compta  tenu  de  la  condition  at 
da  la  nanet*  de  I'exemplaira  film*,  at  an 
eonformit*  avee  lee  conditiona  du  contrat  da 
fllmaga. 

Lee  eaemplairee  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
pepier  eet  imprim*e  sont  filmte  en  commenpant 
par  la  premier  plat  at  an  terminant  soit  par  la 
darniire  paga  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impreaaion  ou  d'illustration.  soit  par  la  second 
plat,  salon  la  caa.  Toua  les  sutres  exemplairas 
originaux  sont  fllm*s  en  commencant  par  la 
premiere  pege  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impreaaion  ou  d'iliuatration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  derni*re  pege  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  dee  symbolaa  suivants  apparaitra  sur  la 
darniire  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  la  symbols  — *•  signifie  "A  SUIVRE".  le 
symbols  ▼  signifie  "FIN". 

Les  cartaa.  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  itra 
filmto  *  das  taux  de  riduction  diffirants. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  itra 
reproduit  en  un  seul  cliche,  il  est  film*  A  partir 
de  Tangle  supirieur  geuche,  de  gauche  k  droite. 
et  de  haut  an  baa.  an  prenant  la  nombre 
d'imegea  necessoire.  Les  diegremmes  suivsnts 
illustrent  la  methode. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

iMoocsm  nsoiuTioN  tbt  chart 

(*NSI  and  ISO  TEST  CHART  No.  2) 


tel2.8 

l£^ 

1^ 

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1^ 

^    >>PPLIED  IN/MGE 


inc 


1653  Eost  Main  Street 

Rochester,  New  York        U6C9      USA 

(716)  482  -  0300  -  Ption. 

(716)  288-5989  -Fox 


■/.'»> 


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The  Under -World  of  the  Dead 

OR 

The  Abode  of  Departed  Spirits 


By 

REV.  J.  J.  ROSS 

PMlor  ol  the  JamM  StMrt  BwtMl  Ouiich,  Hanilloa,  Oni.,  Can. 

Author  of  "The  Sim  of  Hi*  Ccnwi,"  ud  "Facta  aad  More  Facta  About  the 

SeK-Slyled  PaMoi  Charl««  T.  RumII." 


Second  Edition- Tenth  ThouMad 


NewYoil 

CHARLES  C  COOK 

150  Namu  Street 


NOTE 

"The  Under-World  of  the  Dead"  was  read  as  a  paper 
before  the  Toronto  Baptist  Ministerial  Association,  on  April 
aand,  1912.  A  number  of  the  brethren  requested  that  it  be 
published  in  pamphlet  form  that  it  might  have  a  wide  circu- 
lation. It  is  the  author's  sincere  desire  that  its  publication 
may  be  the  means  of  correcting  and  refuting  many  of  the 
current  errors  upon  this  important  subiect.  J.  J.  R. 


\ 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF 
THE  DEAD 

By  REV.  J.  J.  ROSS 


TARTARUS 

XT  IS  to  be  regretted  that  in  the  Authorized 
Version  of  ouj  Old  and  New  Testaments  the 
term  "Hell"  is  used  as  the  rendering  of  three 
distinct  words  with  different  meanings,  ideas  and 
applications.  These  three  words  must  be  distin- 
guished and  given  their  proper  place  and  relation.  The 
first  of  these  words  is  "Tartarus,"  and  is  used  only 
once,  and  that  is  in  2  Peter  2 : 4.  The  passage,  reads : 
"For  if  God  spared  not  the  a.igels  that  sinned  but 
cast  them  down  to  hell  (Tartarus)  and  delivered  them 
into  the  claims  of  darkness  to  be  reserved  unto  judg- 
ment." In  the  Revised  Version  the  word  "hell"  is 
retained.  Among  the  ancient  Greeks  the  name  "Tar- 
tarus" designated  a  subterranean  region,  where  the  im- 
penitent suffer  punishment  for  their  evil  deeds.    Plato 


4     THE  UNDBR-WORLD  OP  THE  DFAD 

used  thii  word  when  describing  the  place,  scene  and 
state  into  which  the  incurably  corrupt  are  hurled,  with 
a  view  to  their  endless  imprisonment.    By  Homer  it 
is  the  name  given  to  the  murky  abyss  lying  as  deep 
beneath  Hades  as  the  earth  is  beneath  the  sun,  in 
which  the  wrong  deeds  of  sinful  immortals  are  pun- 
ished.   In  this  one  instance  the  New  Testament  adopts 
the  heathen  term  for  the  under-world  and  sets  forth 
the  punishment  of  the  fallen  angels,  with  their  present 
abode,  and  the  scene  and  state  of  penalty  into  whic'i 
these  offenders  are  delivered,  held  in  chains  of  dark- 
ness in  reserve  for  eternal  judgment. 

GEHENNA 

The  second  term  translated  "Hell"  is  "Gehenna." 
This  word  occurs  twelve  different  times  in  the  New 
Testament,  and  for  the  most  part  in  the  Gospels  by 
Matthew,  Mark  and  Luke.  It  is  not  found  in  any  of 
the  epistles  except  the  letter  of  James.  In  the  synop- 
tical Gospels  it  is  found  eleven  different  times  in 
a  variety  of  phrases  and  always  on  the  lips  of  our 
Lord.  Some  of  the  phrases  in  which  this  word  is  used 
are.  "the  danger  of  Gehenna  fire,"  to  "be  cast  into 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OP  THE  DEAD     s 

Gehenna,"  to  "de«troy  ...  in  Gehenna,"  "the  child 
of  Gehenna."  This  word  is  only  used  by  our  Lord  in 
these  books  to  describe  the  place  and  state  of  just 
retribution  reserved  for  the  finally  impenitent  which 
will  follow  upon  and  continue  eternally  after  the  final 
judgment.  It  is  important,  therefore,  that  we  should 
examine  with  due  care  the  precise  sense,  point  and 
application  of  this  term  as  employed  by  the  Master. 

According  to  George  Adam  Smith  and  S.  T.  D. 
Salmon,  the  term  "Gehenna,"  which  is  Christ's 
solemn  designation  of  the  future  eternal  under-world 
the  abode  of  the  finally  impenitent,  represents  the 
Aramaic  and  Hebrew  for  "the  valley  of  Hinnom,"  or 
more  fully,  "the  valley  of  the  Son  of  Hinnom"  and 
"the  valley  of  the  children  of  Hinnom."  Thus  the 
name  originally  was  taken  to  mean  "the  valley  of 
Howling  or  the  valley  of  bitter  lamentation." 

From  the  Hebrew  word  Gehinnom,  which,  accord- 
ing to  the  best  authorities  means  "wailing,"  and  orig- 
inally described  a  real  place,  a  valley,  the  Greek  term 
Gehenna  is  derived,  and  is  always  translated  by  our 
English    word   hell.     The   place    so   named   in    the 


6      THE  UNDER- WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 

Hebrew  Scriptures  was  a  deep  gorge  in  the  vicinity 
of  Jerusalem,  on  the  south  side,  forming  the  continu- 
ation of  the  valley  of  Gihon  arid  where  the  Tyropean 
and  Kedron  valleys  meet,  separating  the  Hill  Zion 
from  the  Hill  of  the  Evil  Council.    This  gorge  is  now 
known  as  the  Wady-er  Rebabi  and  is  frequently  men- 
tioned in  the   Old  Testament.     From  the  days  of 
Joshua,  three  stages  especially  mark  this  memorable 
place.    Originally  Josephus  says  that  it  was  the  most 
beautiful  spot  on  earth,  a  veritable  paradise.    Solomon 
spent  much  money  and  time  in  beautifying  this  valley 
with  groves,  parks,  drives,  walks,  fountains,  in  which 
sweet  music  was  heard  and  which  rose  to  the  royal 
palace  on  Mount  Zion  just  above.    During  this  period 
this  valley  was  called  "Tophet,"  a  name  used  for  it 
ten  times  in  the  Old  Testament,  which  means  Tabret 
Grove. 

But  Israel  sinned  in  the  days  of  their  first  glory  in 
the  land.  Solomon,  their  representative  head,  fell 
away,  and  did  much  evil  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord ;  he 
built  high  places,  planted  groves  and  sacrificed  to  the 
idols  of  the  surrounding  nations  whence  he  selected 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD      7 

his  strange  wives.  The  kings  of  Israel  after  him  fol- 
lowed his  example  until  the  days  of  Josiah.  They 
even  went  further  and  caused  their  children  to  pass 
through  the  fire  unto  Molech,  which  the  Lord  had 
commanded  them  not  to  do.  This  is  the  sad  picture 
this  valley  presents  in  its  second  stage,  in  which  period 
it  answers  in  a  measure  to  its  name,  Hinnom,  Wailing. 

In  the  place  where  songs  and  sweet  music  were 
heard,  now,  on  account  of  their  sins  and  departure 
from  God  and  His  laws,  the  groans  and  bitter  wailings 
of  their  children  were  heard. 

The  third  stage  in  the  history  of  this  valley  is 
marked  when  we  reach  the  days  of  Josiah,  that  good 
king,  who  began  early  to  reign  and  who,  too,  sought 
the  Lord  when  young.  This  good  king,  you  will 
recall,  immediately  sought  to  cleanse  the  land,  the  city 
and  this  valley  in  particular  from  those  evils  that  had 
entered  and  were  holding  sway  over  the  people  since 
the  days  of  Solomon.  He  defiled  Tophet,  which  is  in 
the  valley  of  the  children  of  Hinnom,  that  no  man 
might  make  his  son  or  his  daughter  to  pass  through 
the  fire  to  Molech  (2  Kings  23  :  10).    He  cut  down  the 


8      THE  UNDER- WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 

groves  and  burned  them,  he  utterly  destroyed  the 
gardens,  he  ground  the  idols  into  powder,  and  further, 
in  those  places  where  those  evils  had  been  allowed, 
encouraged  and  practised,  he  caused  that  the  very 
bones  of  the  dead  should  be  strewn,  and  Tophet,  the 
Tabret  grove,  in  the  valley  of  Hinnom,  from  that 
time  became  the  defiled,  the  cursed  place,  where  the 
refuse  of  the  city  was  cast  and  burned,  and  where 
the  carcases  of  animals  and  ev2n  the  dead  bodies  of 
criminals  who  had  lived  a  life  so  vile  as  to  be  judged 
unworthy  of   respectable  burial,   were  also  placed. 
The  worm  preyed  upon  their  putrid  flesh  and  the 
fire  burned  continually  day  and  night,  being  never 
quenched.    From  this  time,  Tophet,  the  gorge  of  the 
children    of    Hinnom,    outside    of    the    Holy    City, 
became  the  appalling  figure  of  hell,  the  place  of  ever- 
lasting punishment  of  the  wicked. 

It  is  now  that  we  get  the  full  import  of  the  name 
Hinnom,  wailing.  "And  shall  cast  them  into  the  fur- 
nace of  fire,  there  shall  be  wailing  (Hinnom)  and 
gnashing  of  teeth."  Thus  the  terrible  associations 
of  this  valley,  the  recollection  of  the  awful  horrors 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD     9 

perpetrated  in  it,  ,and  the  utter  defilement  inflicted 
upon  it,  the  fires  said  to  have  been  kept  burning  in 
it  in  order  to  consume  the  corrupt  objects  that  were 
thrown  into  it,  made  it  the  natural  and  unmistakable 
symbol  of  dire  evil,  torment,  wasting  penalty  and 
absolute,  eternal  ruin. 

Now,  what  does  this  terrible  figure  in  the  language 
of  our  Lord  plainly  teach  upon  the  subject  of  the 
final  doom  of  the  impenitent?  There  are  several 
things  made  clear  in  the  term  used.  Gehenna  was 
outside  the  city,  and  so  the  final  abode  of  torment 
will  be  outside  the  New  Jerusalem,  which  cometh 
down  from  God  out  of  Heaven  (Rev.  21  :8,  27). 
Gehenna  was  the  place  for  refuse  and  for  all  that 
was  defiling  and  loathsome.  The  future  Gehenna 
will  be  exactly  the  same,  for  "there  shall  in  no  wise 
enter  into  it  (the  New  Jerusalem)  anything  that 
defileth,  neither  whatsoever  worketh  abomination, 
or  maketh  a  lie,  but  they  which  are  written  in  the 
Lamb's  book  of  life." 

As  a  type,  in  fact  as  the  old  nairow  gorge,  Ge- 
henna has  served  its  purpose  and  passed  away;   but 


10    THE  UNDER- WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 

the  Gehenna  of  fire,  yet  future,  when  the  righteous 
wrath  of  the  thrice  holy  God  shall  burn  continually 
and  when  the  worm  of  a  living  conscience  will  gnaw 
eternally,  will  be  the  judgment  upon  all  the  wicked 
and  those  who  refuse  Christ  and  His  redemption. 

The  eternity  of  the  Gehenna  punishment  is  the 
one  thing  that  our  Lord  emphasizes  in  all  these  pas- 
sages.    He  allows  absolutely  no  place  for  annihila- 
tion or  restoration.    The  bodies  as  well  as  the  souls 
of  the  wicked  are  to  be  cast  into  the  Gehenna  flame 
and  that  forever.    He  speaks  of  the  future  Gehenna 
as   "eternal   fire,"    "unquenchable    fire,"    "the   place 
where  their  worm  dieth  not,"  and  "their  fire  is  not 
quenched,"    "the  prison"    from   which   there   is   no 
escape,"    "eternal    punishment"    as  contrasted    with 
eternal   life,   exclusion   from   the   kingdom,   banish- 
ment from  Christ,  "weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth," 
t.  :;  outer  darkness,"  etc.    (Matt.   i8  :8,  9;    Mark 
9  =43-49;  Matt.  5  125,  26;   Luke  12  .-58,  59;  Matt. 
25  :3o). 

Elsewhere  the  final  destiny  of  the  unrighteous  is 
described  as  the  "mist  of  darkness  forever,"  2  Peter 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD    xz 


2:17;  "the  blackness  of  darkness  forever,"  Jude 
13;  "the  furnace  of  fire,"  "perdition,"  Heb.  10  '.^J, 
39;  "burning  with  fire,"  being  "without,"  the  "second 
death,"  being  "cast  into  the  lake  of  fire,"  the  "lake 
that  bumeth  with  brimstone  and  fire"  (Rev.  22  :23; 
18:8,9;  20:6;  10:19,20,21;  8:22,15);  "the 
wrath  to  come,"  "wrath  and  indignation,"  "tribulation 
and  anguish,"  'death,"  "punishment,"  "destruction," 
"eternal  destruction  from  the  face  of  the  Lord"  (2 
Thess.  I  :9;  Phil.  3  :  19;  Rom.  2  :s,  8;  6  :2i). 
Beyond  these  terms  and  phrases  which  are  so  solemn 
and  suggestive,  the  teaching  of  Jesus  and  His  apostles 
do  not  carry  us,  and  surely  it  is  enough ! 

There  is  not  the  slightest  suggestion  in  any  of  these 
terms,  phrases  or  passages  of  annihilation  or  restora- 
tion. The  punishment  for  the  rejection  of  Christ, 
the  Gehenna  of  fire,  the  final  doom  of  the  wicked  will 
be  endless  in  its  duration  and  commensurat  "ath  the 
infinite  holiness  of  an  infinite  law.  Into  this  .  nal  Hell 
no  one  has  ever  yet  entered.  It  is  "prepared"  for 
the  devil  and  his  angels ;  but  none  of  them  are  there 
now.    The  first  persons  who  will  go  into  this  place 


la    THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 

and  state  of  torment  are  the  beast  and  false  prophet, 
whoever  they  are,  and  after  i,ooo  years  the  impli- 
cation  is,  that  they  are  still  alive  and  enduring  the  tor- 
ments  of  the  damned  (Rev  19  :20;  20  :  10).  This 
does  not  look  much  like  annihilation,  extinction  of 
being,  or  restoration.  The  next  to  go  into  it  is  Satan 
himself  and  then  follows  the  casting  in  of  all  the 
wicked  whose  names  were  not  written  in  the  Lamb's 
Book  of  Life. 

SHEOr,  OR  HADBS 

We  come  now  to  examine  the  third  word  rendered 
"Hell"  in  the  Bible.     That  word  is  "Sheol"  in  the 
Old  Testament,  and  "Hades"  in  the  New  Testament, 
the   former  being  the   Hebrew  and   the   latter  the' 
Greek  for  the  same  place  and  condition.    In  the  Old 
Testament  Sheol  is  translated  thirty-one  times  grave, 
thirty-one  times  hell,  and  three  times  the  pit.    With 
the  exception  of  one  doubted  passage. (i  Cor.  15  :  55) 
the  word  Hades  is  employed  in  the  New  Testament 
ten  different  times  and  is  rendered  by  the  English 
term  hell  in  each  case  (Matt.  11  :23;   16  :  18;  Luke 
16:35;   10:15;  Acts  2  .-27.  31;  Rev.  I  :i8;  6:8; 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD    13 

20  :  13,  14).  In  the  Book  of  the  Revelation  (6  :8) 
Hades,  as  in  many  of  the  other  passages  where  the  term 
is  used,  is  in  league  with  Death,  who  rides  the  pale 
horse,  and  accompanies  the  latter  to  secure  his  booty 
of  victims. 

Evidently  in  the  mind  of  the  Seer,  Hades  in  this 
particular  case  was  not  so  much  a  state  or  condition 
or  even  a  place,  but  a  mighty,  malignant  power,  per- 
sonified in  the  act  of  violent  destruction,  especially  in 
famine,  pestilence  and  war,  inflicting  deadly  wounds 
on  large  masses  rather  than  on  individuals.    In  ancient 
mythology  Hades  is  always  a  person.    He  was  believed 
to  be  the  god  of  wealth  and  was  worshipped  as  such. 
He  was  represented  as  blind  and  bestowing  his  gifts 
on  the  good  and  bad  without  distinction.    The  caves  of 
Spain,  famous  for  their  deposits  of  precious  metals, 
were  assigned  as  his  abode.    On  the  threefold  division 
of  the  universe  he  obtained  absolute  power  over  the 
under-world,  the  realm  of  darkness  and  ghostly  shades, 
where  he  sits  enthroned  as  the  king  over  the  spirits 
of  the  dead.    Hades  is  eternally  fixed  in  his  disposition, 
not  being  moved  by  prayers,  sacrifices  nor  flatteries. 


14    THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 

He  is  borne  on  a  car,  down  by  four  black  steeds,  which 
he  guides  with  golden  reins.  His  hehnet  makes  him 
invisible,  and  hence  according  to  some  scholars  we  have 
the  meaning  of  his  name.  In  Homer,  according  to 
Thayer,  Hades  generally  means  a  person  and  not 
primarily  a  state,  a  place  or  condition.  Such,  I  think, 
is  the  idea  of  Hades  as  presented  in  this  one  passage 
in  the  Book  of  Revelation. 

But  it  is  not  about  Hades  as  a  person  that  I  desire 
to  speak  in  particular.    There  are  about  seventy  pas- 
sages in  which  "Sheol"  and  "Hades"  are  used  only  to 
describe  the  nether  worid,  the  region,  the  realm,  the 
intermediate  rendezvous  of  disembodied  spirits.     By 
common   consent  among  scholars,   the   Greek  word 
Hades  is  the  exact  equivalent  of  the  Hebrew  "Sheol." 
To  all  intents  and  purposes,  therefore,  "Sheol"  and 
"Hades"  denote  the  same  thing.     But  these  terms 
are  never  used  to  denote  the  final  Hell  of  Gehenna 
fire.     Unlike  the  Hell  of  eternal  punishment,   the 
body  is  never  said  to  go  into  it.     Neither  are  these 
words  ever  used  to  designate  the  mere  receptacle  of 
the  body  after  death,  the  grave,  and  should  'never  have 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD    is 

been  rendered  by  that  term.  A  careful  examination 
of  the  passages  where  these  words  are  employed  will 
assure  us  that  they  mean  the  same  thing,  the  nether 
invisible  world,  which  is  distinct  from  the  hell  of  final 
judgment  or  the  heaven  of  eternal  glory. 

Now  what  do  these  many  passages  teach  upon  the 
subject  of  the  intermediate  under- world,  of  the  dead? 
I  claim  that  there  are  several  things  put  absolutely  * 
beyond  dispute.  With  a  consciousness  of  recapitulat- 
ing a  little  more  than  what  is  due,  let  us  briefly  note 
these  things. 

We  noje  first  that  these  words  and  passages  teach 
that  the  under-world  of  the  dead  is  not  primarily  a 
state  or  condition,  but  a  definite  place.  Hebrew  and 
Greek  scholars  are  agreed  that  the  true  and  only 
meaning  of  these  words  thus  used  is  "the  place  of  de- 
parted spirits,"  the  receptacle  of  the  souls  which  have 
left  the  body.  In  Bennett's  Theology  of  the  Early 
Christian  Church,  pp.  323,  324,  we  read,  "Translat- 
ing the  word  Hades  according  to  its  etymology  and  its 
common  use  among  the  Greeks,  it  is  rendered  an 
invisible  place."     In  Beveridge,  on  the  Thirty-nine 


i6    THE  UNDER- WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 

Articles,  pp.  115,  u6,  he  says:  "I  cannot  give  a  better 
periphrasis  of  the  word  Hades  than  by  translating  it, 
that  invisible  place  where  the  souls  that  leave  their 
bodies  live,  whether  it  be  a  place  of  bliss  or  torment. 
In  this  sense,"  he  affirms,  "it  is  taken  and  used  in 
Scripture,  the  Apocrypha,  Fathers,  yea,  and  in  the 
heathenish  authors,  too."    A.  B.  Bruce,  in  The  Para- 
'  belie  Teaching  of  Christ,  pp.  391,  defines  Hades  as 
"the  common  receptacle  of  the  dead."    According  to 
Salmond  the  word  means  "the  covered,  unseen,  hid- 
den place,  the  abode  of  the  departed,  the  nether  world, 
into  which  men  pass  at  the  event  of  death."    Not  only 
in  the  meaning  of  these  words,  but  also  by  every  de- 
scription of  it  in  the  Bible,  we  conclude  that  it  is  a 
place.     Souls  are  spoken  of  as  descending  into  it, 
remaining  in  it  for  a  time  and  coming  up  out  of  it 
again. 

At  His  death  the  Lord  Himself  went  down  into  it, 
remained  there  exactly  seventy-two  hours,  according 
to  prophecy,  and  then  came  forth  again  in  resurrec- 
tion power,  holding  aloft  the  keys  of  Hades,  and  lead- 
ing captive  unto  Himself  a  multitude  of  captives  (Acts 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD    17 

2 :  27 ;  Rev.  2:18;  Eph.  4 : 8.  9. )  Into  this  place  all 
departed  spirits,  good  and  bad,  went  up  to  the  time  of 
the  resurrection  of  Christ. 

Not  only  is  Sheol  or  Hades  a  definite  place,  but  a 
definite  place  which  is  manifestly  distinct  from  the 
grave,  the  common  receptacle  of  the  body  after  death. 
A  few  considerations  will  make  this  plain.    The  word 
employed  to  designate  the  grave  (Queber)  in  the  Old 
Testament  is  used  sixty-four  times.    It  is  spoken  of 
in  the  plural,  the  body  is  repre-  'f^d  as  being  placed 
in  it  by  the  hands  of  man,  it  is  1.   ^ays  located  on  the 
earth,  human  beings  are  represented  as  digging,  build- 
ing or  making  it,  and  man  is  prohibited  from  touching 
it  lest  he  be  rendered  ceremonially  unclean.    The  word 
for  the  under-world  of  the  dead  in  the  Old  Testament 
and  the  term  employed  to  describe  the  burial  place  for 
the  dead  body  are  never  used  interchangeably  and  the 
reason  is  that  they  set  forth  two  different  and  widely 
contrasted  things. 

The  same  fact  is  true  in  the  New  Testament,  where 
there  are  at  least  two  words  (Mnemion  and  Taphos) 
which  describe  the  burial  place.     These  words  are 


i8   TH  :  UNDER.WORLD  OP  THE  DEAD 

translated  grave,  tomb  and  sepulchcr  and  never  used 
interchangeably  with  Hades,  the  word  used  to  set 
forth  the  place  where  those  spirits  live  who  have  left 
their  bodies.  In  the  New  Testament,  as  in  fhe  Old, 
the  words  for  grave  or  tomb  are  used  in  the  plural, 
the  place  described  is  always  represented  as  located 
on  the  earth,  the  dead  body  is  mentioned  as  being 
placed  in  it  by  the  hands  of  man.  Man  is  represented 
as  digging,  making  or  building  it  and  he  is  prohibited 
from  touching  it  lest  he  be  rendered  ceremonially  un- 
clean. 

Now  all  this  is  not  true  iti  reference  to  Sheol  or 
Hades.  It  is  never  spoken  of  in  the  plural,  man's 
body  is  never  spoken  of  as  going  there,  it  is  never 
once  described  as  located  on  the  earth,  it  is  never  once 
spoken  of  as  being  owned  by  one  or  more  persons. 
Man  never  put  anyone  into  it.  Man  never  builds,  digs 
or  makes  Sheol  or  Hades  and  neither  is  he  prohibited 
from  touching  it.  Why?  The  reason  is  plain. 
Though  Jacob  believed  that  the  body  of  his  beloved 
Joseph  was  torn  to  pieces  and  eaten  by  the  wild  beasts, 
^'et  he  had  the  full  confidence  that  he  himself,  on  the 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD    19 

event  of  death  would  descend  unto  that  self-same  son 
into  Sheol  (Gen.  37;  35,  R.  v.,  Margin).    To  the  mind 
and  faith  of  the  old  patriarch  the  grave  was  the  place 
for  the  body  and  Sheol  was  the  place  for  the  dis- 
embodied spirit.    The  body  of  Dives  was  "buried"  in 
the- tomb  and  that  doubtless  with  great  pomp,  but  "hf," 
the  unclothed  man,  opened  his  eyes  in  Hades,  being  in 
bitter  anguish.    The  limp  body  of  Jesus  was  tenderly 
CK    aimed  and  laid  away  in  that  new  sepulcher  loaned 
for  it,  but  He,  the  three  days  unincarnate  Son  of  God, 
descended  into  Hades,  the  abode  of  the  departed  dead 
(Acts  2 :  26,  27).    Thus  we  see  that  Hades  is  one  place 
and  the  grave  is  another.    Those  who  claim  that  Hades 
and  the  grave  are  the  same  place,  namely,  the  tomb, 
are  ignorant  of  the  Biblical  facts,  blinded  by  prejudice 
or  knowingly  the  deceivers  of  the  people. 

But  not  only  is  Sheol  or  Hades  a  place  and  a  place 
distinct  from  the  grave,  it  is  also  a  place  of  definite 
location.  Every  place  must  have  a  location.  Tr  try 
to  locate  the  abode  of  the  departed  spirits,  and  espe- 
cially now  the  abode  of  the  unsaved  departed  spirits  is 
sneered  at  by  some  students  and  teachers  of  the  Bible. 


20    THE  UNDER- WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 


And  yet  it  seems  to  me  there  is  nothing  about  this 
subject,  nor  in  fact  any  other  subject  that  is  more 
plainly  taught  in  the  Word  of  God.  There  are  many 
passages  that  refer  to  this  phase  of  our  subject,  but 
we  will  only  call  attention  to  three  of  them.  In  the 
Epistle  to  the  Philippians  (chap.  2 : 9,  10)  the  apostle 
divides  all  human  beings  into  three  classes.  Those  in 
heaven,  those  on  earth  and  those  under  the  earth,  or  in 
"the  under-world."  Is  "under  the  earth,"  or  the 
under- world,  and  Hades  not  the  same  place?  The 
Pharisees  asked  a  sign  of  Jesus.  He  answered,  "There 
shall  no  sign  be  given  but  the  sign  of  the  prophet 
Jonas."  What  was  the  sign  of  the  prophet  Jonas? 
"For  as  Jonas  was  three  days  and  three  nights  in  the 
whale's  belly,  so  shall  the  Son  of  Man  be  three  days 
and  three  nights  in  the  heart  of  the  earth"  (Matt.  12: 
38-40).  In  the  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians  (chap.  4: 
8-10)  we  are  informed  that  before  Christ  ascended 
up  ori  high  "He  descended  first  into  the  lower  parts 
of  the  earth."  The  phrases  "under  the  earth,"  the 
"heart  of  the  earth,"  and  the  "lower  parts  of  the 
earth,"  all  refer  to  the  same  place.    As  to  His  body, 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD    21 

our  Lord  was  not,  during  those  three  days,  in  that 
place.  His  body  was  in  tlie  grave,  or  merely  in  con- 
nection with  the  earth.  When  we  compare  the  second 
chapter  of  the  Acts  (vs.  25.  32)  we  learn.  I  think,  that 
Sheol  and  Hades  and  the  "heart  of  the  earth"  are  the 
one  and  the  same  region,  the  abode  of  the  departed 
dead. 

Furthermore,  we  learn,  I  think,  from  these  terms 
and  passages  that  the  intermediate  place  of  the  spirits 
who  have  left  their  bodies  was,  up  to  the  time  of 
Christ's  resurrection,  composed  of  two  apartments, 
the  abodes  respectively  of  the  saved  and  lost.    Abra- 
ham, Isaac,  Jacob,  Moses,  Joshua  and  many  of  the  Old 
Testament  saints  are  described,  on  the  event  of  their 
death,  as  descending  into  Sheol.     The  part  of  the 
under-world  into  which  they  went  is  called  "Para- 
dise" and  "Abraham's  bosom."  both  expressions  being 
Talmudic. 

The  blessed  dead  were  with  Abraham  and  were 
"comforted"  (Luke  16:25).  The  believing  malefac- 
tor was  to  be  that  very  day  with  Christ  in  "paradise." 
Both  the  rich  man  and  Lazarus  went  into  Hades  when 


22    THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 

they  died,  for  the  plain  statement  is  "in  Hades  he 
lifted  up  his  eyes  and  seeth  Abraham  afar  off  and 
Lazarus  in  his  bosom."  Abraham,  Lazarus  and  Dives 
were  there  all  in  the  same  place,  the  only  difference 
between  them  being,  that  Abraham  and  Lazarus  were 
separated  from  Dives  by  a  fixed,  impassible  gulf,  and 
that  Lazarus  was  comforted  and  Dives  tormented. 
The  Old  Testament  saints,  the  believing  ones  who 
died  prior  to  the  first  Easter  morning ; .  Lazarus,  the 
penitent  thief  and  Christ  Himself,  all  went  into  Para- 
dise; that  is,  into  the  most  favorable  part  of  Hades. 
They  were  neither  in  heaven  proper,  nor  in  hell  proper ; 
but  simply  and  only  in  Hades.  In  this  Hades  all  the 
departed  spirits  went,  the  good  with  the  good  and 
the  bad  with  the  bad.  There  was  comfort  for  the 
saved  and  torment  for  the  wicked.  They  of  one  part 
could  not  pass  over  to  those  into  the  other  part;  but 
still  they  could  see  and  converse  with  each  other  and 
none  of  them  were  in  their  final  happiness  or  misery. 

In  the  resurrection  of  Christ,  however,  a  great 
change  was  wrought  in  Hades  itself  and  in  the  whole 
condition  of  the  saved  dead  from  that  time  forward, 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD    23 

Christ's  descent  into  Hades  after  death  was  a  part  and 
a  great  part  of  His  redemptive  work,  and  the  begin- 
ning of  His  exaltation  as  the  glorious  Redeemer.    He 
did  not  descend  into  Hades  as  the  subject  or  prisoner 
of  death,  like  all  those  who  had  died  before  Him,  but 
as  the  Conqueror  of  death,  heralding  His  victory  to 
the  spirits  therein  detained  (i  Peter  3: 18).    But  on 
that  first  Easter  morning  He  came  up  out  of  Hades 
again,  actually  bringing  with  Him  all  the  saved  souls, 
even  resurrecting  many  oi  them  (Matt.  27:52,  53).' 
It  is  with  special  reference  to  this  that  He  announced 
Himself  to  John  as  having  the  keys  of  death  and 
Hades    (Rev.  1:18).     When   Christ  made   His  tri- 
umphaiit  ascent  out  of  Hades  He  "led  captive  a  mul- 
titude of  captives,"  at  the  same  time  distributing  gifts 
unto  men  as  tokens  of  His  glorious  achievement,  for 
the  redemption  of  the  race  (Eph.  4:8,  9).    The  day 
that  Christ  came  up  out  of  the  under-world,  He  ut- 
terly abolished  it  for  all  the  believers  of  the  succeed- 
ing ages.    Since  that  day  no  saved  departed  spirit  has 
gone  into  it.    Of  His  Church,  He  said,  "the  gates  of 
Hade,  shall  not  prevail  against  it,"  meaning  doubtless 


24    THE  UNDER- WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 

that  those  gates  should  never  again  close  upon  even  one 
member  of  His  mystical  Body.  In  Christ's  glorious 
ascent  from  the  nether  world,  He  brought  "Para- 
dise" and  all  those  who  inhabited  it,  with  Him  and 
now,  the  "garden,"  the  place  of  bliss,  the  area  laid 
out  for  pleasure,  is  no  longer  in  Hades,  but  above,  in 
the  heavens,  in  the  immediate  presence  of  God,  where 
Christ  is  seated  at  the  right  hand  of  the  Eternal 
Majesty,  where  its  inmates  enjoy  a  far  more  biv:ssed 
portion  than  was  ever  enjoyed  in  Sheol. 

If  Paradise  is  in  the  immediate  presence  of  God, 
in  the  heaven  above,  and  Sheol,  the  abode  of  the  un- 
saved dead,  is  somewhere  in  "the  heart  of  the  earth," 
what  about  Hades  at  the  present?  So  far  as  the 
unsaved  dead  are  concerned  no  change  of  their  place 
or  state  is  revealed  in  Scripture.  At  the  final  judg- 
ment. Hades  will  give  up  the  unsaved  dead,  they 
will  be  judged  and  will  then  pass  into  the  Gehenna 
fire  (Rev.  22:  13,  14),  where  the  smoke  of  their  tor- 
ment v.  ill  ascend  up  from  the  ages  unto  the  ages.  But 
what  is  the  state  or  condition  of  those  in  Hades  now  ? 
Has  Revelation  anything  to  say  to  us  upon  this  phase 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD    25 

of  this  subject?  It  has.  Are  the  disembodied  spirits 
there  active  and  conscious?  We  will  let  the  Scrip- 
tures answer.  Of  the  unsaved  dead  the  Scriptures 
declare  that  they  are  in  prison  (i  Peter  3: 19)  ;  that 
is,  under  restraint  and  guard,  and  in  that  prison  they 
are  reserved  unto  the  day  of  judgment  to  be  punished 
(2  Peter  2:9).  There  is  no  need  of  putting  uncon- 
scious  spirits  under  guard.  Hovey  says,  "Restraint  im- 
plies  power  of  action  and  suffering  implies  conscious- 
ness." 

They^are  also  said  to  be  in  torment  (Luke  16:23). 
Dives  is  a  representative  of  all  those  who  are  in  Hades 
at  the  present.    He  is  in  -reat  pain  while  probation 
lasts  for  his  brethren  on  earth.    He  thinks,  remem- 
bers, sees,  hears,  speaks,  feels,  protests,  and  prays  for 
mercy,  which  is  denied  him.     Fire  is  the  source  of 
his  suffering,  but  not  of  annihilation.    Two  thousand 
years  B.  C.  the  fire  consumed  the  inhabitants  of  Sodom 
and  Gomorrah,  the  cities  of  the  plain,  as  far  as  their 
bodies  were  concerned,  so  that  they  were  not  left,  root 
nor  branch,    but  Jude  declares  (6,  7)  that  since  that 
time,  and  in  the  present,  the  citizens  of  those  towns,  as 


a6    THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 

far  as  their  spirits  were  concerned,  are  suffering  the 
pains  of  eternal  fire.  The  message  of  Revelation, 
then,  is  that  the  souls  in  Hades  are  in  torment,  "suf- 
fering," "in  prison,"  under  restraint,  and  that  fire,  eter- 
nal fire  is  the  instrument  of  their  torture. 

But  some  will  ask:  "What  is  this  fire?"    I  do  not 
know,  and  thank  God,  through  Jesus  Christ,  I  never 
will  know.     Some  tell  us  that  the  Hadean  fire  is  a 
symbol.    So  be  it.    Let  us  remember  that  the  symbol 
is  never  greater  than  the  reality.    The  seed  thrown 
broadcast  in  the  earth  is  not  greater  than  the  word  of 
the  kingdom,  the  vehicle  of  the  divine  life  to  the 
human  soul.    The  four  different  kinds  of  soil  are  not 
greater  than  the  four  different  kinds  of  human  hearts, 
set  forth  by  them.    The  tares  among  the  wheat,  and 
bad  fish  in  the  dragnet  are  not  greater  than  the  coun- 
terfeit Christians  represented  by  them.    The  lion  of 
the  jungle  is  not  greater  than  the  Lion  of  the  tribe  of 
Judah.    The  sign,  the  symbol,  is  always  less  than  the 
thing  signified.    The  figurative  language  of  Holy  Writ 
is  always  a  representation,  on  a  greatly  reduced  scale, 
of  a  fact,  a  reality,  that  cannot  be  described  by  words. 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD    ay 

The  fire  of  Hades,  as  a  symbol,  is  not  therefore  greater 
than  the  terrible  reality  set  forth  by  it. 

What  is  this  reality?  Fire  in  the  Bible,  as  a  figure, 
is  essentially  a  symbol  of  Divine  holiness.  As  such  it 
expresses  God,  in  His  essential  and  transcendent  holi- 
ness, in  three  ways:  (i)  In  purification,  i  Cor.  3: 12- 
14 ;  Matt.  3 ;  2,  3 ;  (2)  in  the  manifestation  of  Himself 
in  that  which  He  approves,  Ex.  3:2;  i  Peter  1:7; 
(3)  and  in  judgment  upon  that  which  His  holiness 
utterly  condemns,  Mark  9:43-48;  Rev.  20: 15. 

Remembering  this.  What  does  the  fire  of  Hades 
look  like?    There  is  nothing  in  it  about  purification 
or  the  Divine  sanction.    It  is  God,  the  just  God,  ex- 
pressing Himself  in  righteous  wrath  upon  sin,  even 
upon  that  which  His  infinite  hoUness  utterly  condemns. 
In  every  human  breast,  pagan,  Jew,  infidel  or  Chris- 
tian, developed  to  a  greater  or  less  degree  there  is 
resident  this  ethical  principle  of  Divine  nature,  which 
we  call  conscience.    "The  wicked,"  said  Calvin,  "have 
the  seeds  of  hell  in  their  own  hearts."    Milton  makes 
even  Satan  say,  "Which  way  I  fly  is  hell;  myself  im 
hell.''     Byron  declares,   "There  is  no  power  in  holy 


a8    THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 

man,  nor  charm  in  prayer,  nor  purifying  form  of  peni- 
tence, nor  outward  look,  nor  fast,  nor  agony,  nor 
greater  than  all  these,  (the  innate  torture  of  deep 
despair  would  make  hell  of  heaven),  can  exorcise  from 
out  the  unbounded  spirit  the  quick  sense  of  its  own 
sins."  Another  said,  "I  know  of  the  future  judgment, 
how  dreadful  so  it  be,  that  to  sit  alone  with  my  con- 
science will  be  judgment  enough  for  me."  Would  to 
God  that  the  Hadean  fire  were  only  the  reality  and  not 
the  symbol! 

TWO  ERRORS  REPUTED 

'    I  said  that  the  word  Gehenna  and  the  passages  that 
contain  it  allow  absolutely  no  ground  for  a  second 
chance,  future  hope,  annihilation  or  final  restoration. 
Now  we  find  that  the  terms  and  passages  which  de- 
scribe the  intermediate  under-world  of  the  lost  dead 
help  us  to  properly  estimate  and  refute  two  other 
great  doctrinal  errors.     They  refute  that  doctrinal 
error  which  claims  that  souls  sleep  between  death  and 
the  judgment.    This  view  is  most  destructive  to  hu- 
man beings,  has  absolutely  no  support  in  Scripture 
and  is  based  upon  the  false  assumption  that  the  pos- 
session of  a  physical  body  is  necessary  to  acti  ity  and 
consciousness.    The  unfallen  angels  are  probably  pure 
spirit  beings.     Are  they   not  active  and  conscious? 


THE  UNDER- WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD    29 

(Heb.  1 :  14.)  God  is  pure  spirit,  and  is  He  not  active 
and  conscious?  Where  death  is  spoken  of  as  "sleep" 
in  Scripture  (Dan.  12:2;  Matt.  9:24;  John  11:11; 
I  Cor.  11:30;  15:51;  iThess.4:i4;  5:10).  it  re- 
fers only  to  the  body  and  never  to  the  soul. 

This  study  of  Hades  contradicts  also  that  error 
which  claims  that  the  torment,  the  suffering  in  the 
place  of  departed  spirits  Is  purgatorial.     According 
to  that  doctrine  "all  who  die  at  peace  with  the  Church 
(the  Roman  Catholic  Church)  but  are  not  perfect, 
pass  into  purgatory."    Here,  it  is  claimed,  they  make 
satisfaction  for  their  sins  committed  after  baptism, 
by  enduring  pain  for  a  longer  or  shorter  period,  ac- 
cording to  the  greatness  of  their  sinnerhood.     The 
Church  on  earth,  however,  has  #ower,  by  prayers  and 
the  sacrifice  of  the  mass,  to  lessen  and  shorten  these 
punishments  or  to  remit  them  altogether.     But  we 
have  noticed  that  no  saved  disembodied  spirit  goes 
into  Hades  now.    The  saved  are  completely  free  from 
the  suflferings  of  the  unj^r-worid.    For  them  to  leave 
the  body  is  for  them  immediately  to  pass  into  Paradise 
and  to  be  with  the  Lord  (i  Cor.  5 : 1-4;   Phil,  x  :  21- 
23). 


30    THE  UNDER- WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD 

The  Church  on  earth  has  no  power  to  forgive  sins, 
either  in  this  world  or  in  the  next;  God  alone  can 
forgive  sin,  and  does,  and  will  forgive  when  the  sinner 
repents  toward  Him  and  believes  on  His  Son  as  the 
only  Saviour  of  men,  and  it  is  the  Church's  place  to 
clearly  and  lovingly  declare  this  sublime  message. 
This  view,  moreover,  denies  the  completeness  of  the 
atonement  made  in  Christ  and  that  justification  before 
God  is  on  the  ground  of  faith  alone.  These  passages 
make  it  unmistakably  clear  that  all  who  pass  into 
Hades  at  death,  like  all  who  pass  into  Paradise  at 
death,  have  their  place  and  destiny  fixed  for  all  eter- 
nity. None  who  enter  the  Hadean  fire  will  escape  the 
eternal  Gehenna  flame. 

CONCI,USION 

In  conclusion.  In  the  announcement  that  the  risen 
Lord  made  to  John,  He  claimed  unconditional  and 
unlimited  authority  over  the  entrance  to  the  realm  of 
the  dead  by  saying  "I  have  the  keys  of  death  and  of 
Hades."  The  Pope  is  not  the  holder  of  those  keys 
and  neither  is  any  other  human  being  or  body  of 
human  beings.  Jesus  had  those  keys  then.  He  holds 
them  still,  and  from  His  resurrection  to  this  present 


THE  UNDER-WORLD  OF  THE  DEAD    31 

moment  they  have  been  wielded  by  Him.    With  those 
keys,  He  has  the  power  to  shut  that  none  can  open 
and  open  that  none  can  shut.    He  gives  persons  to 
death  and  Hades  and  retains  them  there  as  He  will, 
and  He  will  bring  them  forth  again  at  His  good  pleas- 
ure, as  He  did  the  little  maid,  the  young  man  and 
Lazarus,  Mary's  brother.    There  is  no  part  of  Hades 
so  deep  or  difficult  to  open,  but  He  can  open  it,  and 
thrust  His  enemies  in,  and  bolt  it  that  they  may  never 
come  out  until  the  great  white  throne  is  set.    He  will 
apply  those  keys  again  and  every  soul  will  come  forth 
into  resurrection  life  to  pass  into  eternal  judgment 
with  body  and  spirit  united.    But  at  the  present  time, 
and  now  for  two  thousand  years,  and  praise  God  for 
it,  He  locks  the  gates  of  Hades  against  His  friends 
that  they  might  not  enter  there  but  pass  into  Paradise. 
Though  once  dead  and  an  inmate  of  Hades,  He  is  alive 
no"   fdr  all  the  ages  of  the  ages. 

This  risen  life  communicated  to  the  soul  by  the 
Holy  Spirit  saves  from  the  under-worid  of  sadness 
and  gloom  and  secures  the  title  to  eternal  happiness 
and  glory.     Simple  reliance  upon  Christ  as  the  one 


3a    THE  UNDER-WORLD  OP  THE  DEAD 

who  satisfied  the  broken  law  for  us  and  paid  the  full 
penalty  of  our  sins  is  the  one  and  only  condition  for 
the  possession  of  this  life. 

Let  us,  then,  trust  Him  without  reserve,  love  Him 
completely,,  obey   Him  implicitly,  »•  "rifice   for   Him 
willingly,  and  preach  Him  compassionately. 
"In  our  hearts  enthrone  Him ; 

There  let  Him  subdue, 
All  that  is  not  holy, 

All  that  is  not  true; 
Crown  Him  as  our  Captain, 

In  temptation's  hour, 
Let  His  will  enfold  us, 
In  its  light  and  power.' 


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Some  Pacts  and  More  Facts 
About  the  Self-Styled  " 
Charles  T.  RusseB 

{Of  Millennial  Dawn  Fame) 


BY 


REV.  J.  J.  ROSS 

Pastor  Jame?  Street  Baptiit  Chuidi.  Hamilton.  Ontario,  Canada 


THIS  sinall  book  conteiins  the  history  of  the 
famous  libel  case  instituted  by  "Pastor" 
Russell  against  Mr.  Ross  lor  an  exposure  made 
in  a  leaflet  v  Inch  is  included  in  the  rgmpibl^* 
The  cha  ler  of  "Pastor"  Russell,  ^P^- 
deslroymg  system,  his  deceptive  business  methods 
ad  corporations,  his  social  and  domestic  relations 
and  his  standing  before  the  courts  of  Canada  and 
the  United  States  are  all  made  to 
the  limelight  in  this  booidet  It  ir- 
most  successful  weapons  used  to  counL 
baneful  influence  orRussell  and  his  cult 

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